Today's letters: Late-term abortions are not happening in Canada without a ‘reason’

Late-term abortions are not happening in Canada without a ‘reason’

Re: Waiting For An Abortion Law, editorial, Feb. 2.
On Twitter, Jonathan Kay (the Post’s Managing Editor Comment) stated: “If you can find an incorrect sentence in this editorial, identify it.” The misleading sentence is: “It is perfectly legal in Canada to have or perform an abortion — for any reason, or no reason at all — at 20, 25, 30 or 35 weeks gestation.”
I am totally fed up with “lawyered” assertions that totally misrepresent the facts. While in Canada we do not have a law, we do have very strict professional guidelines. No physician in Canada can terminate a pregnancy over 24 weeks without serious indications that the life of the mother is at risk or that the fetus has very serious malformations. I have sat with these women as they received the terrible news and sat with them throughout the terrible long, tear-drenched process. The assertion that late-term abortions can be performed “for any reason, or no reason at all” is just not true.
I challenge Mr. Kay to find one late-term abortion performed in Canada to a healthy mother with a healthy fetus. I am one of many politicians “willing to tackle” this subject. He needs to be one of many journalists who are prepared to admit when their fine prose may have misled Canadians … in this case that late-trimester abortions are not happening in Canada without “reason.” Dr. Carolyn Bennett, MP for St. Paul’s, Toronto.

How to avoid live fetuses

Re: Treat Late-Term Abortions As Homicide, Backbench MPs Say, Feb. 1.
As physicians, we are trained to assist as best we can people facing various medical challenges. One of the challenges a pregnant woman may face is a miscarriage. If a woman miscarries before her fetus is viable (i.e., during the first 20 weeks of her pregnancy), our role is to support her in her grief. If she miscarries in or after the 21st week, our duty is to provide her newborn child with the care it requires to survive. As a result of this training, it has always been clear for me where the limit on elective abortion should be set: At 20 weeks of gestation.
This was reinforced this week in a document I received from The Quebec College of Physicians, titled “Guidelines in performing abortions.” When performing an abortion on a woman who is 21 weeks pregnant or more, in addition and prior to following general procedures, we are instructed to inject digoxin or potassium chloride into the fetus or the amniotic sac. This effectively kills the fetus, thereby avoiding having to deal with a live, aborted infant. Dr. Christiane Dauphinais, Toronto.

Abortion is a travesty …

Alberta MP Leon Benoit says that in late-term abortions some babies are born alive and then killed. Of course this is homicide or, more appropriately, infanticide, just as killing a baby in the womb is feticide. Canadian law permits feticide if the procedure is a “medical abortion,” but not the killing of a child that is born, whether or not as the result of an unsuccessful abortion. That is the law, regardless of practice. Yet, what is the difference between feticide or infanticide? A baby dies in either case, even although one procedure is “legal” and the other is not. The problem lies in Canadian law’s definition of “person,” which is a travesty of justice, crying out for revision. Moira McQueen, executive director, Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute, Toronto.

Regarding abortion, MP Rona Ambrose states: “This is an issue that women are not interested in debating.” I must correct Ms. Ambrose — I am one of tens of thousands of Canadian women who are very much interested in debating this issue. As minister of the Status of Women, Ms. Ambrose should be listening to all women, not just those who agree with her values on abortion. Liz Rybka, Brampton, Ont.

The letter the three MPs sent to the RCMP is not speaking to late-term abortions in general, which are legal in Canada, one of the few countries world-wide with no restrictions at all on abortion. What the letter is decrying are the 491 late-term abortions documented by Statistics Canada in which the baby was born alive, but then was left to die. The MPs are simply requesting an investigation. Is that too much to ask? Are we really comfortable as a society sweeping this under the rug? Ruth Meerveld, Beamsville, Ont.

… or is the status quo OK?

The abortion issue was settled years ago. Until it is born, a fetus is part of its mother’s body and is subject to her wishes — and no one else’s.
Leave this subject; let it die. Charles Hooker East Garafraxa, Ont.

Re: Anti-abortion display ‘private property’, B.C. town says, Feb 1.
Regarding the mock cemetery for aborted fetuses in Abbotsford, Joyce Arthur, spokesperson for the Vancouver based Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada, states that abortion is a “private experience that is absolutely no one’s business” (beyond that of the woman herself, obviously). How very wrong she is. That that aborted fetus will not be supporting me in my dotage makes it very much my business. That it is a human being, not an orange or an apple, and I my brother’s keeper, makes it much, much more so.

Jeff Willerton, Airdrie, Alta.

Re: Treat late-term abortions as homicide, backbench MPs say, Feb. 1; Re: Waiting for an abortion law, editorial Feb. 2.
The three Tory MPs named in this editorial are to be praised for raising the issue of “homicide” when a baby who has already exited the womb live is killed or left to die.
The Post, while allowing that an abortion law is long overdue, takes exception to the use of the term “homicide,” calling it “lurid.” But technically, as laws now stand, there may indeed be cases of “homicide,” at least where there is a chance that the baby may survive with some quality of life if proper care is given.
The term “lurid” reminds me of the rhetoric hauled out by pro-abortionists whenever photographs are shown of aborted fetuses. Their delicate sensibilities are supposedly offended by such photographs. But aren’t they rather more worried that the general public, confronted graphically with the consequences of abortion to living beings (the fetuses), will rise up in repugnance against the hateful practice, which for thousands of years was dismissed out of hand as intrinsically evil?
Yes indeed, some kind of law, any law, is needed to curb the killing of fetuses. How about defining as a “human person” the human egg as soon as it is fertilized? Scientists tell us unequivocally that it is a human being with potential, not merely a potential human being. Lars Troide, Apple Hill, Ont.

Canada’s justice system is the most important tool in providing protection for the weak and vulnerable. That these live-birth abortions have not been investigated shows the system is failing those members of the human family who are the weakest and most defenceless and that we are on a slippery slope to legalized infanticide. Canada needs to act now to address this gross violation of human rights by enforcing existing Criminal Code protections for newly born children. Thus I applaud the three MP’s who brought this to the attention of the RCMP Commissioner.
It’s time that as a collective nation we ask if “choice” is enough reason for law enforcement to be silent, even after a child is born? For truly, how is this choice any different than the choice to kill an infant or any other born human?
Either human rights apply to all humans or we may as well throw the notion out the window all-together. Mike Schouten, Campaign Director, WeNeedaLAW.ca, Surrey, BC

Thank you, National Post for reminding us of the fact that Canada “is the only nation in the Western world without an abortion law.”
God Bless Messers, Vellacot, Benoit and Lizon for being men of fortitude in their pursuit of the truth. I pray that the MP’s supporting you silently will find the courage to stand with you publicly in the House of Commons. Rhonda Wood, Brampton, Ont.

Kudos to the three federal backbenchers, MPs Maurice Vellacott, Leon Benoit and Wladyslaw Lizon, for fighting to keep the atrocities from being swept under the rug by their brave efforts. This should uncover the truly insidious evil of abortion and all its ugly realities. It has progressed from originally attempting to protect women from harming themselves to women and babies being harmed by doctors, to expanding and extending the term limit to no limit, without regard to consequences for any kind of moral or ethical responsibility by doctors to babies, (who also become their patients in reality). How can we ignore the 491 babies left to die and not cry out for some kind of retribution or justice? What would it take to at least admit that it is nothing short of premeditated first degree murder and it has to stop? Anne Smyth, Toronto.

I am horrified to see the effects of the crown jewel of the feminist movement: abortion on demand, that requires that for later term abortions the baby be killed in the womb “perhaps using lethal injection” to “avoid legal complications and psychological trauma for the staff” and that live-born babies are “likely due to professional failure” of not killing the baby prior to that abortion so that the staff is not traumatized by receiving an alive baby.
I think every one involved should feel the psychological trauma of killing the baby in the womb: the mother, the father, the family, the doctor’s performing the killings despite taking the Hippocratic Oath of “First Do No Harm”, the nurses, the politicians who have legalized such killings and the complicit voters who support the abortion legislation, so that they can weigh the blood that is on their heads for freeing women and men from the natural consequences of sexual behaviour.
Also, let us not hide behind the euphemism ‘fetus’, considered to be a non-human being. Call abortion the killing of the baby growing in the womb of the mother, who is in the family way because of a union between a man and a woman. Jiti Khanna, Vancouver,

I read with rapt attention Saturday’s front page article concerning late term abortions in Canada. Thank you for giving it the coverage it deserved even though it was not an emotionally easy read . So interesting how language effects how we think and act. A mother who plans to take her pregnancy to full term will refer to the unborn as “her baby.” One who plans not to carry the unborn to full term and those who will assist her refer to the unborn as “a fetus.” Patrick Stewart, Combermere, Ont.

World shaken by penny’s demise

Re: Royal Mint Stops Distributing Penny, Transactions To Be Rounded, Feb. 4.
I can’t believe the penny is going out of circulation. I can’t believe we’re all going to become slightly poorer. I can’t believe we get to be around to experience this historical change. I kind of like pennies, and I will miss them. I like that artists are using them as a medium. I like that my mother suggested our family gather all of our pennies and make a Keystone art piece.
I like that 99¢ sales will be gone — I have always loathed $14.99 and $22.99 and have a particular distaste for $36.99. Thank goodness that will all be over. I can’t wait for the first time I have to wait a little longer for a cashier to do the rounding math in their head. It’s sad, “penny for your thoughts” will need to be explained to our grandchildren. Or that the value of those “lucky pennies” you find on the ground will be purely luck — which in a very real way, makes them more meaningful. And what to do about those little plastic “Leave a penny, take a penny” things.
I feel like our world is being shaken ever so slightly — I love this stuff. David Keystone, Toronto.

The irony is that now that the penny is out of circulation it has become a collector’s item and instead of leaving pennies on the ground or failing to pick one up people are now hoarding them. The penny is now suddenly “in” — even though it’s out. Douglas Cornish, Ottawa.

Are you going to miss the penny? Or are you glad to see it go? Let us know in 75 words or fewer by Feb. 8 at 2 p.m. EST at letters@nationalpost.com with responses to be published on Feb. 11.

Liberal oysters

Re: Ontario Could Become Next Greece, Jan. 31.
The leadership of the Ontario Liberal party is like an oyster; it changes gender (Kathleen McGunity = Dalton Wynne) without altering anything else, it is incapable of producing a bright idea, and when pressed to explain endemic corruption and malfeasance, it simply clams up, prorogues and sticks its head deeper into the sand. Peter Strachan, Oshawa, Ont.

Not a true picture of Detroit

Re: Tale Of Two Cities, Feb. 2.
I have to mention an interesting inference that comes from the data included in the infographic regarding Detroit. The data seem to suggest something like the following:
— Detroit then (starting in 1960): mostly white
— Detroit now: mostly black
— Detroit then: high density
— Detroit now: houses in bad condition/many abandoned
— Detroit then: lesser murder rate
— Detroit now: high murder rate/lots of shootings
The inference that an uneducated reader could possibly make from the presentation of the data is that black people in Detroit have caused lower home prices, their houses are in poor conditions and they have created a higher murder rate/shootings. As more black people moved into Detroit, the worse the crime got and worse the housing conditions got. To put it bluntly: the reader may conclude that black people are bad.
I know this wasn’t the intention and correct me if I am wrong, but to me, this graphic invites a racist inference. I think the better question to ask is: “Why did the whites leave Detroit and why couldn’t the majority black population keep the city streets safe and the housing conditions up/unabandoned?” Ryan Solcz, Victoria.

‘One does what one can’

Re: Idle No More: The View From The (Far, Far) North, Terry Audla, Jan. 29.
Inuit Leader Terry Audla speaks of the critical issues of housing and hunger, stating there have been “submissions to the government to address these issues.”
Sadly, poverty like this is not restricted to native and Inuit communities. Deep poverty is endemic across Canada. Those who are in the helping agencies in towns and cities across this nation know this all too well. The greater problems are with those who are on disability pensions, as well as the working poor. They must pay the same bills everyone else does, but on minimal incomes. People live in darkened, chilly, cramped conditions across this nation. They rely on food banks and helping agencies to keep food on the table and the landlord/bank/mortgage company at bay. Too often there is not enough money for basic bus transportation, and their children may arrive at school with little in their lunch boxes.
What is always heartening is to view those who are seeking ways to improve their lot. They will (if they are able) upgrade education, take second (and third) jobs, or move to areas with better opportunities.
As the old saying goes, “One does what one can.” Donna Procher, Innisfil, Ont.

‘Thank you, Mr. Black … I think’

Re: Attack Of The Lady Premiers, Conrad Black, Feb. 2.
Conrad Black’s reference to Ontario Premier-designate Kathleen Wynne as a lesbian, his back-hand across Quebec Premier Pauline Marois’s face of political self-serving intent and his seeming acceptance of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s disrespectful comedy show left me conflicted over my respect for your columnist.
I wondered, has his trial, his conviction, his imprisonment and his attempt to return home (as he now sees fit to refer to Canada), caused a deep blemish on his otherwise analytical, clarity of thought? Or has he left me questioning my own commitment to my own political and personal beliefs?
As I read this column, I found my temperature rising and my respectful opinion of Mr. Black ebbing. I found myself disliking the man, agreeing with him, disagreeing with him, liking him and shaking my head in disbelief and wonder. I discussed his column with my well-educated wife and teenage daughter and realized that this was but another masterful oration (albeit in print) by Mr. Black to foster deep personal thought and controversy in our otherwise tepid, at best, Canadian societal opinion.
There is no right or wrong, there is no good or bad, just differing opinions and if that isn’t truly Canadian, I don’t know what is.
Thank you Mr. Black … I think. Wayne Proulx, Toronto.

Good to see that Conrad Black attempts to remain a gentleman. Having suggested that Kathleen Wynne, the “self-identified lesbian” that is “steeped to the eyeballs in the brackish waters of the McGuinty regime” was selected as leader of the Liberal party for no other reason than political fashion, he wishes her well! In another time, however, a gentleman such as Mr. Black would know that he would have to accept the inevitable challenge to a duel to settle what most would understand to be a real insult to a lady of character and substance. Ms. Wynne’s choice of weapons at dawn! John Hague, Mississauga, Ont.

Saturday humour

Re: Putting Up With The Man, Dear Diary by Tristin Hopper, Feb. 2.
The story this week about domestic cats and their effect on the ecology included a reference to Stanley, the Prime Minister’s feline. While reading the story I thought to myself: “I bet we get to read Stanley’s diary on Saturday.” Sure enough, when I turned the page on Saturday morning, there was Stanley! What a great way to start the day; Stanley’s insights into the PM’s interests were most illuminating.
Give the person writing the Dear Diary piece a raise. Chris Askin, Ottawa.

Re: Wrong Insemination “Worst Nightmare,” Feb. 1.
The caption under the photo with this story (in the print edition) states: “Dr. Norman Barwin of Ottawa pleads guilty to inseminating three women with the wrong sperm at a Toronto disciplinary hearing on Thursday.”
Really? Is this what goes on at disciplinary hearings? Maybe if the three women would have stayed home and watched TV this would not have happened. Robert Birnbaum, Montreal.

My favourite part of the Weekend Post is always the City Life spread — it is always fun to see how many Mulroneys one can count on seeing there. This weekend’s issue was particularly hilarious (there were three) and lent some comic relief to what has been a very dismal, dull week. Barbara Morrison, Niagara on the Lake, Ont.